The Monster and I
by Crying Ivy
Summary: At the age of three, Princess Isabella had a curse placed on her that left her ugly and disfigured. There is only one way to break the spell - yes, you guessed right, love. Unfortunately, it'll never work if Isabella keeps scaring off all her suitors.
1. Teaser

Once upon a time, there lived a benevolent King and his immortal wife.

Since birth he has been bred to rule – the kingdom at his feet, the people at his beck and call. His parents governed with kind hands and in turn, he grew up untainted by the spoils of royalty. His people loved him and in return, he loved them.

Since birth she has been destined to rule the skies, the daughter of a Goddess. Her mother was a beauty even among the already stunning Olympians, and it was no surprise that she inherited these physical traits.

The young King heard of this Goddess, sought her out, wooed her, and eventually married her. She left Mount Olympus behind for a life with her mortal husband.

They loved each other very much and ruled the kingdom with the same mindset – loyalty and kindness above all else.

Their love continued to grow stronger everyday, and eventually they welcomed into the world a magnificent baby girl. Created from the blood of man and the power of the Gods, the child was a combination of all traits wonderful in the world.

Her name was _Isabella_, but to those who knew her well – just 'Bella.'

Beautiful, inherited from her mother. All those who saw the young princess immediately fell to their knees, in awe of her beauty. They could not look away as her very looks called to them, casting a spell on all around her. She could have told them to do anything and they would not even stop to hesitate.

Approachable, vulnerable – these were traits she inherited from her human father. Although Gods were beautiful, their powers made them intimidating. Many feared what they could do and took a revered yet distant approach to them.

But for the young princess, although she inherited the war-stopping beauty of her mother, she invoked a sense of protectiveness from those around her. Everyone wanted to be close to her, to touch her, to hold her and shield her away from all pain. They would rather die than have her even shed one tear.

This was the power of the Princess, a blessing and a curse.

Other human royalty feared her – she was too liked, her influence was too strong. With just one look she can turn the tides of war, drawing supporters to her side.

The Gods feared her – she wasn't like other demigods, who often faded into oblivion. No, she was too protected, too valuable to be left alone. She could turn the humans against them.

But both sides did nothing. They stayed weary of this anomaly, waiting and lurking to see what she would grow into. Would her powers manifest? Or would they simply subdue and slowly disappear like the flames of a flickering candle?

And so the Princess stayed safe, protected by the uncertainty of those wishing for her demise.

That is, until her the evening of her third year.

Dresaelda was not a popular Goddess. In fact, there were many Olympians who wanted her gone, sent to Hades to work the fields among the dead and condemned.

Although her attitude left much to be desired, her powers were of another concern. There was a reason why she still lived in Olympus despite her less than spectacular track record.

Dresaelda has the power to take away beauty, a trait most valued by the Gods. With their chiseled bodies and their sculpted proportions, to lose their features was like death to these Olympians. In one wave, Dresaelda could inflict them with a fate that was – in their eyes – worse than death itself.

And that was saying a lot, considering their immortality.

Only she could reverse the curse, and because of this everyone avoided her.

Now Dresaelda was furious. Not only had her sister married the benevolent, handsome King – yes you guessed right, her sister was the beautiful Queen loved by all – but now she had popped out this disgusting brat? It was another slap in the face, another reminder of how her sister had gotten everything while she received nothing.

When her sister was adored by all for her blonde, stunning beauty while Dresaelda – although equally as beautiful, in a horrific, terrifying way – was shunned aside?

She learned to live with that.

When her sister grew into her powers and learned that she was able to manipulate people based on her mere looks?

Yes, she learned to live with that.

And when the young King's eyes fell upon her sister's golden image and he instantly fell in love with her, despite the fact that Dresaelda met him first?

It was hard, but she learned to live with that.

But this? This beautiful, stunning, _mortal_ brat?

She could handle a lot of things, but she couldn't handle this.

And so she devised a plan.

You see, because Dresaelda and the Queen are twins (what did you expect? Of course they're twins) her powers had no effect on the Queen, and vice versa. Perhaps this is why she hated the Queen so much, for only she could see through her fake exterior (her words, not mine).

But the infant princess was another deal entirely. She may be half God, but she was also half human.

Which made her vulnerable to Dresaelda's power.

Dresaelda knew this, and of course her sister knew this. The Queen knew that it was only a matter of time before her twin would snap, it just took the right amount of pressure.

And so she hid the princess away. Protected and hidden behind the castle walls, Isabella was safe from her aunt's evil powers.

That is, until the evening of her third year.

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	2. Chapter 1: In which we meet our Princess

**BELLA**

"Darling, I think we've known each other long enough to finally meet face to face. Come on now, take off this silly mask." He tries to tug the mask away from his face with little success.

Fucking git. It was made of wrought iron with a heavy padlock, did he think he could just pry it off by mere strength? Not with those dainty fingers.

"Oh Prince Damon," I stop to let out a shrill giggle – which elicits a smile from him – before continuing. "I believe you were thoroughly informed of the rules before entering this situation. The mask stays on until I say so."

He lets out a frustrated sigh and grasps around for my hand. I purposely keep it out of reach just to amuse myself as he grapples around.

"But Darling, don't you trust me? We're well acquainted by now." He manages to grab a hold of my elbow, and quickly latches on, lacing our fingers together.

"Ah, there you are." He smiles, angling his head towards where he thinks I sit. Moron.

And if by "well acquainted" he means "we've only known each other for three days," than yes, I agree.

"Tell me, Prince –"

"Damon, please."

"Err…alright, tell me, Damon –"

"Oooh Darling," he groans out, pulling my hand to his lips, "I love the way you say my name –"

I quickly cut him off before he orgasms on the spot.

"Yes…um, yes, me too. Anyways, as I was saying…why exactly do you want to be together?"

Besides the fact that my parents are ridiculously rich, and ridiculously desperate to break the spell.

Okay, the latter only applies to my mother, but pretty much whatever she wanted my father wanted. He could not deny her anything.

"Because I love you, Isabella." He breathes out, raining more kisses on my arm. At this rate, I think I'll have to amputate it to get rid of the germs.

_Wouldn't make a difference, considering you're ugly anyways_.

Gee, thanks inner self for that vote of confidence.

_It's true, might as well accept it now_.

Well I have. I'm perfectly fine with the way that I look, but my mother is a different story.

I glare at Damon, wishing I had the ability to melt things with my eyes (I think I have an uncle who can do that, maybe I'll hit him up for some lessons) but instead I focus on the task at hand.

The sooner I do this, the sooner I can stop playing these stupid games my mother keeps setting up for me.

"Yes, well, I appreciate that." He frowns at my words.

"Darling." I quickly interject. Don't want him running away now when I have bigger plans in mind.

"But," I continue, "why else do you like me?"

His brows crinkle at that question. Like I said, fucking git.

"Why…else?"

I nod, and then realize he can't see me. Fucking hell, his stupidity is rubbing off on me.

"Yes."

"Why…because of your beauty."

I'm sorry?

"Pardon?" I ask, a bit shocked that he would give such an answer. I knew he was an idiot, but come on.

"I meant your inner beauty." He corrects quickly. His voice is higher than usual when he lies.

I add that little tidbit into my mind vault for safekeeping. Not that he's going to be around much longer for me to use it against him.

"Go on," I encourage, giving his hand a squeeze. Ugh.

"You are gentle, and kind. Your heart is pure gold and your voice is as smooth as maple syrup."

"Go on," I say again, when really what I mean is "shut the fuck up before I shove this pastry down your throat!"

Or even better, up his ass.

"We fit so well together, this is surely a match made in heaven!"

"What about my outer beauty?"

"Hmm?" he tries to lean his head on my shoulder, but I shove him away.

"Sorry," I say, "I strained a muscle during archery lessons yesterday."

He consoles himself by nuzzling his face into the crook of my arm.

"You never answered my question."

"Oh, I didn't? What did you ask…about your inner beauty?"

"Outer."

"Oh right, outer. Well I don't think we have to worry about that, darling, if you're half as beautiful as your mother than I don't think we have anything to worry about."

Wrong answer.

I quickly pull out the keys, unlock his mask and whip it off before he even has time to adjust his eyesight.

"You worried now?" I ask, smirking at him from underneath my bushy brows.

At first he blinks a few times, as if unsure of what he's seeing, before I see the clogs turn and click within that peanut brain of his.

And it's fantastic.

"AHHHHHHHHH!" He screams, knocking over the coffee table. He scrambles to his feet and runs behind the couch, using it as a barrier between us.

"What's wrong, _Darling_, didn't you want to get married?" I stalk towards him, my gait slow and limping.

"Stay away!" he yells, throwing a cushion at me.

I ignore him and hop onto the sofa, not caring that I still have my shoes on. He backs up in horror and knocks over a lamp, causing it to fall to the ground and shatter into pieces.

"I said, stay away!" he screams again, running for the door.

I'm about to chase after him because it's been awhile since I've worked out, but am immediately stopped by my bodyguard.

"Hello Tyler." I smile sweetly at him. "Sup?"

"Bella," he says in a stern tone. "The Queen will not be – "

He doesn't get to finish because in that moment, said Queen storms in looking like all hell is about to break loose.

"I cannot believe you did that _again_ Bella! How many times do we have to go through this?"

Even angry, my mother looks like a beautiful angel. Her skin burns brightly as her hair starts to float around her, her eyes shooting sparks. Literally. I can see the red shimmering in and out of her skin as she glares at me.

She marches towards the couch and sits down, ordering me to do the same. I trudge over, not caring about manners.

"Mother, you and I both know Damon's a twit who can barely string together words. Why the hell would I marry him?"

"Oh, I don't know," she snaps, "because you've scared off every other suitor?"

If she means to sting with her words, it doesn't work. I've become immune to insults by this point.

"They're going to be scared off regardless of what I do once they see me," I shoot back, "why not just get it over in the beginning?"

"Oh Isabella," she sighs, "what am I going to do with you?" She reaches for my face and light touches the bumps on my cheeks. "Don't you want to be beautiful?"

Of course I do. What girl doesn't? But at this point I've given up entirely.

"Give it up mother, it's not going to happen." I shrug away from her and stand up, heading for the door.

Just as I'm about to leave, her voice rings loud and clear.

"Tomorrow evening, another suitor will come to replace the one you have ran off. Be on your best behavior or else I'll have your books taken away."

Well fuck. What the hell am I suppose to do if I have nothing to read? It's not like I can run off to party with my friends. Or lack thereof.

She really knew where to hit me so it hurts.

"Fine." I grounded out, before heading towards my room.

I'll just think of more creative ways to scare him.

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><p><strong>I hope you like Bella, because I do. <strong>

**Chapters after this will be much longer :)  
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**Reviews get my juices flowing, so keep 'em coming!**

**Love, Ivy**


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